


Open Cluster

by misbehavingvigilante



Category: Night In The Woods (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Introspection, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2017-11-24
Packaged: 2019-02-06 09:53:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12815004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misbehavingvigilante/pseuds/misbehavingvigilante
Summary: Bright Harbor burns like a star in the distant, beautiful but volatile.





	1. Red Shift

**Author's Note:**

> This is a birthday fic to one of my good friends who also enjoys the hell out of this game so I'm hoping he'll like this~
> 
> Anyways, I don't feel the best about this piece but the first fic for any fandom is always the hardest. 
> 
> Sorry about thrusting in space words every other lines and the fact this entire piece is so disjointed.

Bright Harbor burns like a star in the distant, beautiful but volatile. 

Some days, it feels like Possum Springs is a black hole, trapping everyone in its orbit and only a lucky few are able to escape at all rather being bound here by gravity destined to be consumed.

But then again, those aren’t the thoughts he’s supposed to be having. Angus is supposed to be happy that Mae is back, and that Gregg gets his best friend back and he is. He is. Mae is a good person, it’s just… she has this bad habit of bringing out the worst in Gregg.

There’s a nosedive in his less than stellar behavior lately that can be directly attributed to Mae’s return.

Angus sighed about hearing the door swing open without even glancing over. He really doesn’t want that to be Mae, but it’s probably going to be her. Comparatively speaking that is, it’s much more likely it’s Mae than a customer since he’s done the math during the one of the many days he went hours without seeing a single customer. The job isn’t nearly as soul sucking then, but then it’s boredom he has to combat somehow.

Still, he doesn’t want to fight, even if it’s not today, eventually it will take place. A catastrophic and dramatic end just like a supernova, a natural and inevitable thing.

Chance happens to be on his side today when it’s Selmers’ familiar form that greets him instead. He actually doesn’t know her very well despite her being one of the few repeated customers this place has, if Angus remembers right she frequents this place usually when she babysits some of the local kids, the Harleys.

It’s actually a relief when it’s her that he must have let out a sigh of relief loud enough to be heard as she glanced towards him, concern in her eyes. “You okay, Angus?”

“I’m… fine.” It really isn’t the customer’s place to hear about his life turmoil and it’s the sort of thing that’s been trained out of him to relay due to the multiple jobs of these positions he’s held over the years. “Are you finding everything okay?” The good old customer service voice usually either makes people chime out of the conversation or focus more on what they came into the store for.

“Yeah, fine.” Selmers shrugged, this place is never set up too confusedly particularly since Angus keeps it neat. “Just trying to find the brats a movie they’ll enjoy so hopefully they’ll focus on something less destructive for a while.”

 “I see. Do you need help picking out a title?”

“Nope. I got it under control, but thanks Angus.”

There’s a lull in conversation after that as Selmers seeks out a title. Angus is grateful for it because again, he doesn’t really feel like talking about himself. It’s not something he’s usually very comfortable with as a whole, opening up doesn’t come to him naturally.

The only one who had really managed to do that, and make him a modicum more sociable had been Gregg with his infectious personality and boundless affection. He hadn’t been lying when he told Mae that Gregg was his corner at that party.

That’s part of the reason it stings so much what’s he’s doing now is impacting both of them, it’s eroding away the chance they have to get out of here and gain even an iota of breathing room from this collapsing town.

Angus loves Gregg, even this doesn’t dampen his love for his boyfriend. Nothing could their love is an ever expanding universe, growing with light enough to one day make space shine like canopy of diamonds.

But the string of crimes done in jest? The law won’t care about intent, the law will only see an adult willfully breaking the law and come down hard on Gregg. The prison system is already a messed up institution but it’s even more daunting when someone isn’t neurotypical.

Those thoughts fill him with anxiety more than never leaving Possum Springs does.

Angus doesn’t want to lose Gregg.

“Angus?” Selmers’ coaxing voice brings him back to the present. She is standing before the counter, a dvd case laid on it apparently haven’t found some movie up to the standards of unruly children. She isn’t looking at him impatiently or unkindly, rather with sympathy like she’s endure this before herself. “You were kinda spacing out.”

“Sorry.” Angus means it he doesn’t like people seeing him like this, it’s even worse that it’s at work and he’s supposed to be maintaining a professional demeanor and this is anything but. “I’ll just… get this for you.”

“Thanks.” Selmers doesn’t like it drop into a lull like last time though. “You know Possum Springs has a poet society?”

“No.”

“It’s new. Poetry helped me among other things when things spiraled out of control. Maybe it could help you. Or maybe you have your own thing?”

Angus doesn’t give an answer because he’s really reached his quota of conversation he can handle right now and luckily Selmers doesn’t push it any further this time and departs without another word.

If he can’t hold it together then that’s two not just one heavily weighted odds against their favor. Bright Harbor blooms red in the distance, a red shift, a signal that it is moving further and further away from him.

Out of reach as all stars ultimately are.


	2. Blue Shift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s strange that an event so arcane and dark could dawn on a better future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's probably weird to divide this into two chapters since it's so short, but I think if it's chaptered it doesn't feel quite as disjointed, I don't know I just did what I thought was best. ;p

A cosmic horror far more otherworldly that they currently know space to be is how Mae ends up describing the thing in the pit. Honestly Angus doesn’t know what exactly happened, it may just be one of those things you never get all the answers. As unsatisfying as that is, its life.

The more pressing matter had been the cultists after all. As they were a direct threat to all of them down there in the mines, in a sea of black and a drum of noise. Despite how ambivalent everyone’s feelings on that had been, Angus’ feelings had been clear.

They killed Casey, and upon of several other people and all for the hope of dream of Possum Springs becoming a star again. To draw in those with its light, to wow and to wonder. To breathe back life itself into the town.

But Possum Springs had never been a star, it had always been a blip in the sea of space barely there unless you knew to look for it. An inevitability is natural, they may be unkind but it is the way of the universe.

So any sympathy Angus could have flew out the window.

It’s strange that an event so arcane and dark could dawn on a better future. But undoubtedly despite the experience there is hope on the horizon.

Gregg and him and an auxiliary Mae had worked out their issues coming to a mature understanding about what it is to be an adult. Even Mae and Bea had worked out their issues separately though similarly Bea’s issues with Mae had mirrored his own.

But even despite the troubles, they are still together even if that is only for a little longer. A perfect example of an open clusters of stars, a group of young stars that start out bound together but as time stretches on, the gravitational influence shifts them apart. However though they are no longer together, they are all moving roughly in the same direction, a memento of their shared origin.

As he takes Gregg’s hand in his, Angus feels anchored like they will be a pair of binary stars that will never part.

 

 

 

Angus likes to cook, it’s a trait that Gregg has always adored about him because it means they don’t just have to eat pizza all the time. Well, he could eat pizza all the time, but Angus says it’s better to have a diverse diet. Besides, there’s always joy in eating something that Angus made from scratch, the flavors are out of this world.

That said, he doesn’t know why Angus is baking brownies. Usually, if he’s going to make something he tells Gregg early on in the day or even before so he doesn’t ruin his appetite by feasting on what delights the Snack Falcon has.

So it could mean he’s upset which is bad, but Gregg isn’t oblivious he does notice these things. He is a good boyfriend, after all.

“You ok, Cap’n?”

“Yes, bug.” Angus responds at the same time he pulls the brownies fresh out of the oven, instinctively batting Gregg’s thieving hand away. “They’re not for you unless you want to come.”

“Come where?”

“Possum Springs Poet Society meeting.”

Gregg wonders if he heard that right for a moment. “We have a poet society?”

“It’s new.” Angus explained. “Selmers told me about it. Don’t know if I’m much for poetry, but she was a friend when I needed one. One meeting can’t hurt.”

“Mae does say she’s a good poet.” Gregg had remembered Mae gushing about Selmers poetry being one of the brighter parts of her days a little while back. “And I can’t say no to your brownies, so let’s go!”


End file.
